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It is the Glory of Kings to Search out a Matter. Proverbs 25:2 MYSTERIES OF GOD THE MYSTERY OF GRACE Introduction
Revelation, inspiration, searching, knocking,
asking; these are all pathways that lead a
seeker into the knowledge of the mysteries
of God. "God is a Spirit," says the
scripture. His divine existence is one that
can only be perceived, believed on a non-sensing
level. If I say that I know God, whom you neither
know nor see, you can only judge my assertions
on the basis of my personal credibility. Some
spokes persons for God or more credible than
others. The early apostles did not so much
argue the existence of God as a concept but
proved His existence by supernatural attestations,
demonstrating the Power of God. (1Corinthians
2). So we have the matter of proving to
a materialistic non believing world that God
is real and that He still has a part in the
day to day affairs of this world and its occupants. We are given understanding in the light of Jeshua (Jesus) in a line by line, precept upon precept, understanding that Jesus is the Word of God, Itself the greatest mystery. For when the Scripture is made known in its completeness we shall See Him as He IS. The following writings deal with the subject of Mysteries. These do little more than introduce the topics of God's mysteries, some of the mysteries. There remain, more, much more, to be gleaned within these domains of study. Moreover, there are likely more and more mysteries and mysteries within mysteries which will come into our field of view in due time. Revelation is progressive and continues to deepen as His truth is being revealed by God's Holy Spirit in God's divine time. God withholds certain things from us because it is not yet His time. Contrary to some ecclesiastical authorities we do not have all the answers (facts) as to; Who God is and what His complete plan is for His Body, The Church (another mystery). Matthew
16:16 But who do you say that I am?
Grace
is everything that
God has provided, Is providing,
Jesus
brings the principle of Grace sharply into
focus when he proclaimed, "I in myself
can do nothing, It is the Father in me who
does the work." and; "Why do you
call me good? There is none good but God." What we see predominate in church activity today is men who are greatly gifted in knowledge and personal skills but this is not the same as being empowered by Grace through the Holy Spirit. "If any speak let him speak as the Oracle of God, if any minister let it be by the ability that God provides. 1 Peter 4:11" Human abilities may be rich and charismatic in the literal sense but we see too little of the abilities that God supplies. It is the anointing and its numerous manifestations (See the 7 Spirits of God_)that attest to the Power that God supplies. The Word of Faith movement may have taken Biblical Faith and gone one step too far, turning faith into a method or process that has the effect of removing God's hand from the ministering believer. The kingdom of God reality remains - - It is the work of God to 'will and to do' all the things on our behalf. The faith-filled Christian must not lose sight of the fact that, as Jesus himself said, "In himself he can do nothing - -" It is still the Father that does the work. It is through GRACE that God works on our behalf through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Grace
in common Christian terminology
has been given a limited theological
meaning. Essentially that grace is the gift
of God that saved us. We believed and confessed
unto salvation. This occurrs once when we believe
and are born into the kingdom of God. This
is the first act of grace. Grace is present
of course in this blessed moment. The Spirit
of Grace brought us to salvation. But grace
continues in a dramatic sense for any and all
of the children of God. As we read in the book
of Acts, "Great grace was upon all the
believers." This is the continuing endowment
of Power to those who believe. Growing in
(through) grace and truth is the mechanism
of maturing as believers. The activation
of grace in our inner spirit is enabled through
the study and understanding of the Word of
truth. i.e. Scripture.
A Bible Example of Faith in Action To continue the idea of response to God or his Word, we can find it portrayed in the Gospel story in Matthew 14:28. In this account, Peter sees Jesus walking upon the surface of the water, an act quite impossible in the natural world unless of course the water be frozen. Peter, always adventurous, tells Jesus that he would like to join him in walking on the water, but only if it truly is Jesus. The faith sequence is portrayed by Jesus telling Peter to "come." Peter himself, then proceeds to approach Jesus, walking on the water. When he removes his eyes from the master and begins to sink, Peter began to notice the waves and the storm, when his faith was replaced by reason and doubt, Peter began to sink. An indispensable element of the equation is the fact that Jesus spoke directly to Peter and said, "Come." Jesus spoke this Rhema, or spoken word, and Peter acted upon that word from the Lord. It was not Peter's ability to transcend the laws of nature but the power of the Word of God, which formed all of the natural world in the beginning. This Word held Peter up miraculously. This was faith in action. In the present
day we do not often get rhemas to walk on water but
if His voice tells you, "Walk." you should respond.
If it tells you, "Sing." you should resound. If it
tells you "Go." you should respond. If it tells you,
"Stop."you should respond. This is acting in response
upon faith. The natural human mind, emotions and will (the human soul) would not seek God, could not believe, and it has no inherent goodness in itself. Though not all of our souls are that of arch villains or wholly reprobate, everyone in the human race " -falls short of the glory of God." Therefore our faith is first given to us by God. His provision or spiritual endowment is GRACE. Grace is everything which God has provided and will provide, working (spiritually) on our behalf. Grace is what God does! Yielding and obeying is what we do! In the beginning all of Paul's epistles, Paul pronounces a certain phrase. I believe these words were written by the Spirit of God to provide a living rhema capable of empowering our faith as we read. This by the apostle and charged with Spiritual Power, that phrase is, "Grace be unto you -," sometimes it is accompanied by "and Peace -- " This "invocation" has come to be ritualized in church ceremonies but in its initial form, I believe it was Paul's intent that it be, a prayer of faith. A prayer of faith is a spoken proclamation which is intended to achieve a Spiritual result. Grace is the working of a Spiritual God on our behalf. Grace is linked to the term "anointing", which is the manifestation of power and presence of God working upon one of his servants at a certain time. It is the Father in heaven who sends His Spirit to help us in every way including to believe. This is an act of GRACE. Grace is that which God does or supplies freely on our behalf. Grace too is spiritual. It is a "Spiritual Fuel" which allows faith to work. Salvation through grace and faith is described in Ephesians 2:8, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:" Faith Grows as a Fruit as we study the Word of God Faith grows as a consequence of studying the Scriptures which are the repository of God's mind and wisdom. The entrance of God's word brings "life" and "light" as the psalmist declares. God's Word begins to redirect our thought processes and renews our minds to conform to God's thought. If we have little understanding of the Word, it follows that we can not be persons of faith. But again I promise you, God provides Grace and anointing to follow Him and know His word. Faith is cumulative, like a living entity it grows and develops. Hearing the Word of God spoken builds faith. (Faith comes by hearing.) Reading the Scriptures aloud is a powerful faith building exercise. Speaking the Word of God with our own mouths builds and activates faith. For example when it says in Scripture, "Fear not, for I the Lord am with you." We may activate faith by saying aloud, "I will not fear for you Lord, are with me." If we believe we shall see the glory of God. If we do not believe, we can not see God's manifested glory. Unbelief does not activate faith. God does not violate our unyielding will and unbelief. As we move toward God in faith, he moves toward us. Though some may wish to argue that Jesus was too much like God and thus exempted from the life of faith that is required of us. I do not believe that this was the case. I believe that Jesus of Nazareth, acting as the "son of man", exercised faith continuously from His youth onwards. It is said of Jesus, that he was full of Grace and Truth. Two things are evident here: First that Jesus lived by the Word (Scriptures) and the Scriptures are the source of Faith. The son of God did not operate as God in this world but as the son of man, thus he operated under faith which pleases God and so demonstrated this principle to all of us! "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17, Luke 3:22) A second obvious proof that Jesus walked in faith is the Scripture which we quote from Habakuk 2:4, " - -the just shall live by his faith." Whose faith we may ask? The answer I believe, is Christ (the Lord.) Therefore if it is his faith which empowers us, he must therefore be preeminent in the exercise and use of faith. Jesus obeyed
the word of the Father with whom he was in Spiritual
union. It was the Father's voice and Jesus' response
to his Father's voice, the Rhema, which characterizes
Christ's life of faith for all of us, his disciples.
Jesus likewise, demonstrated faith by action. Thus both Jesus' words and actions initiated a life under God's control. His spoken words were with the tone of authority, they brought a result which was often miraculous. Miracles are spiritual intervention in the natural order, thus they are considered supernatural. To receive any manifestation from God we must act upon faith. We must say or do something. (Romans 10:9,10, we see the principle of Faith described that results in the new birth "for with the heart we believe and with the mouth we confess.") Only true and sincere belief causes God to honor faith. God looks upon the heart of man. We can not in faith through another's belief. We can not walk on water because Jesus told Peter to come forth. Our faith must be personal and it must be sincere knowing with assurance that his Word was given to us. Finally,
friend of God, to summarize: All spiritual promises
are reached through the door of faith. To see the
promises of God actualized requires faith. With faith
all things are possible. " "If you believe you will see the Glory of God. " "Knowledge makes arrogant, love edifies."
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Introduction to Mysteries of God
The
Rapture of Believers, Part 1 Mystery of the Cross, Crucified with Him Mystery of Faith Believing God's Word Mystery
of Grace, God's Hand Stretched Forth Mystery of Power and Divine Enablement Mystery
of Spoken Words of Covenant Mystery of Righteousness in the Beloved Mystery of the Word -.Bible is a Living Force
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